Is it holiday hiring season already? You bet it is.

Be flexible. The biggest mistake job applicants make when seeking a holiday position is demanding a specific schedule.

Didn't
summer just officially end last week? It seems too soon to be thinking about
holiday season hiring. But it's not.

The
majority of holiday season hiring by retailers is done in October each year. This
year, projections indicate we'll see about 700,000 holiday season hires by
retailers in the United States. Although respectable, that's down from last
year's total of 751,800 holiday season hires.

Global
outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., which tracks
holiday hiring, attributes this year's lower hiring forecast to
factors that include improved staffing efficiency by retailers and a substantial
increase in retail hiring that already took place in 2013.

According
to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, retail employment grew by about 482,000
workers between March and August, up 42 percent from the 340,000 workers added
to retail payrolls during the same period in 2012. Hiring from June through
August of this year was especially robust, according to the firm, with
retailers adding 218,600 new workers, compared to just 67,000 during the same
three-month period last year.

"With
enough flexible, part-time workers, retailers can handle the wide fluctuations
that occur in the last half of the year, starting with back-to-school sales,
followed by Halloween and culminating in Christmas," said Challenger, Gray's
CEO John A. Challenger.

That said,
substantial hiring for the upcoming holiday season is still expected to occur. Challenger
reminds those hoping to land holiday season jobs that retailers won't be the
only employers adding workers.

"Last
year, FedEx added 20,000 workers and UPS brought in an extra 55,000 to help
with holiday deliveries," he said.

Encouraging
job hunters not to limit their job pursuits only to "on the floor" sales
positions, Challenger noted, "The big box stores, in particular, also need
extra workers in their shipping facilities and overnight stocking positions. Opportunities
also exist outside retail in areas like catering and with shipping companies,
restaurants and movie theaters."

To make
yourself more competitive for seasonal jobs, remember to keep basic interviewing
guidelines in mind. Those include being on time for scheduled interviews,
dressing appropriately and making sure your hair, fingernails, and shoes are
clean.

Expressing
enthusiasm about the store you're interviewing with and its merchandise can
also help. With that in mind, you may want to start your job search at retail
stores where you like to shop. For the holiday season, many retailers like to
hire their customers because they are both familiar with and enthusiastic about
their stores' merchandise.

Of
course, if your first several inquiries don't produce a job offer, broaden your
targets to include other stores in locations where you'd like to work. If
you've never shopped in a particular store before, take time to visit it at
least once before asking about a job there. You don't have to spend money you
can't afford to spend buying something there. You should, however, familiarize
yourself with the products and prices at the store during a brief visit.

You
can even get a feel for the approach of the store's sales staff as they offer
to help you check out various items or try them on, should the store sell
clothing. Ultimately, the more knowledgeable you are about the store and its
merchandise, the more effectively you should be able to answer the common
interviewer questions "Why do you want to work for us?" and "What do you know
about our store?"

Touching
base with friends who work in retail can also prove productive. Those friends
may be able to introduce you to the store manager who will actually be doing
the interviewing and seasonal hiring. That introduction can give you an edge
against job applicants without personal contacts at that store.

One
caveat: Before asking for a friend's referral, make sure your friend hasn't recently
told you her boss put her on probation. She needs to be considered a reliable employee.
If she's not, her introduction can work against you because her manager may assume
your work ethic would be as poor as hers.

Another
point Challenger considers important for seasonal job hunters is this: "Be flexible
about the work schedule you'll accept," he advised. "According to one hiring
manager, the biggest mistake job applicants make when seeking a holiday
position is demanding a specific schedule from prospective employers."

According
to Challenger, seasonal workers must be flexible about both their work schedules
and the type of work they'll be doing. "Either," he said, "can vary as the
holiday season progresses."

Sheryl Silver's experience as a recruiter and outplacement consultant enables her to bring a real world perspective to her blogs about job hunting, career management and the latest employment trends.